Many of the Fortune 500 and leading brands in America are increasingly
searching for agile software developers that can help them improve speed
of delivery and provide more and better value to their customers.
However, a study conducted by Yoh
based on data from CareerBuilder's Supply
and Demand Portal revealed that the number of advertised agile jobs
outnumbered active candidates by 4.59-to-1. This is just one of the
market observations revealed in Yoh's new infographic, "Agile
Development: Who's Hiring & Who's Hirable."

This skills gap has not only made it difficult for companies to quickly
source quality talent on demand, but also puts them at risk of hiring
technical professionals that have poor agile methodology skills. At the
same time, as more companies seek to capitalize on agile practices, many
agile professionals struggle to find an established agile program that
fits their abilities.

The Yoh analysis showed that companies advertised a total of 558,918
agile jobs from 2010 to 2012. During the same time period, there were
merely 121,876 active candidates, just 17 candidates for every 100 jobs.
This "agile gap" is compounded by inconsistencies in experience and
geography. Of the available job seekers, more than 50 percent have 10
years of experience or more, while less than two percent have one to two
years of experience. The agile gap exists across the U.S., varying only
in its degree of severity. For instance, while states like Florida and
Texas have a higher average number of active candidates, the ratio of
open positions to candidates remains high, at 4-to-1. State with a more
severe gap, however, such as Washington and California, have 10 open
positions for every candidate.

The adoption of the agile development methodology has accelerated since
the latter part of the last decade, while training for frontline
developers failed to keep pace. Because of the high demand for a limited
number of agile developers, many industries, such as computer systems
design services, custom computer programming services, and software
publishing, struggle to attract the agile talent they need. Those that
get available, experienced talent are forced to pay premiums, whereas
others are forced to hire and train professionals on agile methodologies.

"These discrepancies can hurt the hiring companies in the form of
increased costs, salaries, and turnover," said Don Hanson, Senior Vice
President, Eastern Region at Yoh. "When companies hire the wrong
candidate, they jeopardize employee engagement as well as potentially
damage their reputation in the agile community, hurting future
recruiting efforts. More than ever, a thorough vetting and hiring
process is crucial for both agile employers and jobseekers. To that end,
Yoh is currently using its expertise in agile methodology talent to help
companies source the talent they need while connecting agile
professionals with the roles and companies best-suited to their
abilities."

"Right now agile developers hold all the cards," said Bob Schatz, Chief
Agile (News - Alert) Evangelist at Yoh and Owner of Agile Infusion. "As demand for
agile skills continues to grow, employers must clarify the extent of
their agile programs, whether they're established, new, or still just an
idea. By erring on the side of transparency about the state of the
company's agile culture, employers will be able to find the best talent
for their open positions and avoid turnover costs as well as
misunderstandings during the hiring process that could alienate future
agile recruits."

Yoh, a Day & Zimmerman company, sought insight into the state of the
agile talent pool as demand continues to rise for agile practitioners,
who build software and transform business processes through teamwork;
customer collaboration; short, iterative cycles; and responses to
change. As more companies seek a nimble and entrepreneurial approach to
business, the agile development methods of companies like Facebook
and Apple
are quickly spreading, but a lack of educational resources has left few
agile practitioners to fill that need.

"Given the gap between available talent and demand, companies seeking to
hire an agile team must understand that the adoption of agile
development requires a complete change in culture, and they must make
that transition or risk high turnover, lower morale, and loss of
credibility in the agile community," Schatz added.